Power-actuated door-operating device



Jan. 1, 1929. 1,697,272

L. D. FRIEL ET AL POWER AdTUATED DOOR OPERATING DEVICE Filed Sept. 21, 1927 2 Sheets-Sheet i JZTTOBJYEX- L. D. FRIEL ET AL POWER ACTUATED DOOR OPERATING DEVICE Filed seg t.21, 19 27 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 2% -37 v Q l -6 of the car.

comprises a vertical bearing 16A in which 18' Patented Jan. 1, 1929.

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Application filed September 21, 1'922. Seria1 No. 220.508.

Our invention relates to a door operating device particularly adaptable for street cars and the main object is to provide a simple easily operated and siibstantial device for opening and closing entrane and exit doors selectively. The device is also useful for other doors operated by power means. Other objects and features of 'our invention will be fully revealed in the following specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which, v

Fig. 1 is a top view of our devicefand Fig. 2 is a front elevation of Fig. 1-, partly in section as at line 2-2 in said Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a perspective View of the upper portion of the tubular shaft 17 and arm member of our device.

Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic plan view of our device as applied to the front vestibule 'dooi's'of'a street car, the latter being indicated indotted lines only.

Referring to the drawings by reference numerals, 5 in Fig. l, jas an illustration of one application of our device, designates the front of a street car vestibule and. 6 is a quadrangular outline designating the lowest step of the street car and adjacent said front end 5. 7 and 8 designate two twopart. or folding doors adapted to close the door opening or step space, 7 being shown in closed position and 8 in open position, and in both doors the outer vertical corners are hinged as at 9, the free edge of each door as 9F being suitably guided parallel to the outer edge ofthe step, 6 when the door is opened or closed. 10 is a lever fixed to the door 8 and 'fulc'rumed under its rear fixed corner. 11 areach rod extending to a lever 12 of our device and 13 is a. reach rod pivotally fixed to the under side of door 7 and rearward of its pivot 9, the inner end of said rod 13 pivotally conected to another lever 141 of our device. 15 is another lever fulcrumed on a common vertical center with the levers 1 2 and 14, and all three said levers fixed with relation to each other as hereinafter described. The means for mounting and operating the said three levers for closing and opening the doors comprises a vertical frame (see Figs. 1 and 2) suitablyfix'ed in said vertical position inwardly'of the lowest step The lower part of said bracket rotatably mounted a tubnlar shaft 17 which shaft 17 (see Fig. 2).

has an enlarged head part 17H above the bearing and opening upwardly, the lower end of said tube 17 extending below the said bearing 16A. The arm 15 forms an integral part of head 17H and extends radially therefrom (see Figs. 1 and 2) as shown enlarged inFig.

18 isa solid shaft rotatable within shaft 1717H, this shaft eirtendinjbelow shaft 17 and there having lever 14: r'eyedto it as at lKand lever 12 is keyed at 12K to the p 1811 is an enlargein'ent or head at the top of shaft 18 and has a diametral cavity or key-way 18K in its upper end.

16C is a cylinder formed integral with the top part of frame 16 in vertical concentric alignment With and above shaft 17.

19 and 19A are upper and lower cylinder heads for cylinder 16C and 20 is a piston reciprocable in said cylinder. 21 is the piston rod extending downwardly through 19A andits lower end having a transverse horizontal bar or keeper 21K continually in engagement in the key-way 18K of shaft 18. The piston 20 is normally pressed jnpward by a-coil spring -220r equivalent means within cylinder 16C' the normal upper Tposi tion of the keeper 21K being about as shown in Fig, 2 and within the upperpart of keyway 18K At this time the said keeper 21K is first above the upper :perim'etral edge 17H of shaft 1711.. 170 are diametrically opposite and upwardly directed aligninglhgs of rim 171-1 and adjacent said lug faces as provided diametrically opposite deep notches 17N. 23 is an air intake pipe for cylinder 16C to press piston 20 ,clow-n and simultaneously its keeper 21K engages deeply in the notches -17N andnotch 18K. Now it will be understood that levers 14 "and 12 may be reciprocated and of course, when this is done both doors 7'- 8 may be opened by movement transmitted through the reach rods 11 and 13. The means for reciprocatin-g lever 15 comprises a so-calleclair-operated door-"engine. Said engine comprises a cylinder 21 mounted horizontally and having a piston with a piston rod 25 connected by meansfof a connecting rod 26 with lever 15 (see Figs. '1 and 2 27 and 28 are 'air conductorpipes; connected to the interior and opposite ends of cylinder 24Vto recipro- Cate. the piston, andits rod '25 as desired. YVe have illustrated only this onemeans of both doors 7 and 8 will be opened.

reciprocating the rod 25 but other equivalent devices may be used as our invention resides mainly in the means employed between said rod and the levers 12 and 14.

i It is obvious that the keeper 21K, if not pressed down, will remain stationary, and reciprocation of lever 15 by rod 25 will turn shaft 17 only, the keeper being then inoperative together with the shaft 1818I-I.

In this manner lever 14: and its reach rod 13 are inoperativeandthere is no opening action of door'7, but lever 12. is moved and its reach rod 11 will impart opening movement to door 8. On the other hand if air is admitted into cylinder 16C, the keeper 21K is pressed down into the notches 17N and deeply into notch 18K and subsequent turningmovement of lever 15 will cause simul taneous movement of levers 12 and 14 and Oppo site or closing movement of the doors is accomplished by simply causing opposite movement of piston rod 25 by suitable means.

In Fig. 4, 30 is an air reservoir, from which an air supply pipe line 31 with a lead 31L connects a hand operated valve 32 for controlling air pressure to either end of cylinder 24 through pipes 2728. Another lead 31L conveys air pressure to a valve 33 which controls air passage through pipe 23 to cylinder 16C. 7

In case, however, that both gates or doors should be open for some time it is apparent that spring 20 may cause thekeeper 21K to be moved up to its pre-operative position but with this in mind, we provide the lugs 17C of such height at their sides adjacent the seats 17N that the upper parts of the said lugs will be above the highest position of the keeper and therefore when the doors are to be closed the keeper will be engaged anyway on the return stroke lever 15, as to the left in Fig. 3.

Two sets of gates on opposite ends of a car can be just as readily operated by the motorman, the valve control merely being connected to the counterpart means at both ends of the car and mounted in the same relative operative positions.

In street car operation it is not always necessary to open both doors, in factonly one door as 8 may be used most of the time. For this condition'it is obvious that the car operator need only to operate the engine to closeand open said door 8 through rod 25, link '26, lever 15, shaft 17, lever 12,

' and reach rod 11. WVhen door 8*is thus engaging projections 17C and aligning slot 18K and 17 N so that both doors are in closed position and held there by air pressure in cylinder 24.

As above described our device provides for opening all or half of a door opening as the operator may choose, and using only one engine 24and reciprocating rod 25.

We claim:

1. In a structure having a door opening and pair of doors adapted to close said opening, a horizontally reciprocable rod element mounted near said door opening, an upright frame fixed adjacent said rod and in proximity to said doors, a vertically mounted rotatablemain shaft in said frame and a radial arm thereon operatively connected with said reciprocable rod and a door operating arm on said shaft having operative connection with one of the doors to open or close the said door when the said rod is reciprocated; a secondary shaft mounted concentric of the said main shaft, a radial arm on said latter shaft having operative connection with the other door, and means mounted in the frame to selectively cause the said main shaft to operate its door and to cause both said shafts to be interlocked and oscillated simultaneously to cause both doors to be closed or opened, said main shaft being tubular and provided with an upwardly opening enlarged head end, said secondary shaft rotatably mounted within said hollow shaft and having an enlarged upper head, said hollow shaft head provided in its upper rim with diametrically opposite notches and the head of said secondary shaft provided with a diametral deep groove and means selectively engaging in said notches and groove simultaneously to lock said shaft members together and to be moved vertically out of engagement with the notches of the main shaft, said means for engaging the said shafts comprising a vertically oscillatable, horizontally disposed keeper arranged is oscillated in one direction only for purpose set forth. f

-2. In a structure having a door opening and a pair of doors adapted to close said opening, a horizontally reciprocable rod element mounted near said door opening, an upright frame fixed adjacent said rod and in proximity to said doors, a vertically mounted rotatable main shaft in said frame and a radial arm thereon operatively connected with said reciprocable rod and a door 'operating arm on said shaft having operative connection with one of the doors to open or close the said door when the said rod is reciprocated; a secondary shaft mounted concentric of the said main shaft, a radial arm on said latter shaft having operative connection with the other door, and means mounted in the frame to selectively cause the said main shaft to operate its door and to cause both said shafts to be interlocked and oscillated simultaneouslyto cause both doors to be closed or opened, said main shaft being tubular and provided with an upwardly opening enlarged head end, said secondary shaft rotatably mounted within said hollow shaft and having an enlarged upper head, said hollow shaft head provided in its upper rim with diametrically opposite notches and the head of said secondary shaft provided with a diametral deep groove and means selectively engaging in said notches and move simultaneously to lock said shaft members together and to be moved vertically out of engagement with the notches of the main shaft, said means for engaging the said shafts comprising a vertically oscillatable, horizontally disposed keeper arranged diametrically of said upper shaft ends and fixed at the lower end of an up per right piston rod, a cylinder in the upper part of said frame, a piston therein for said piston rod and yielding means within said cylinder normally holding said rod and keeper at a predetermined elevation with the said keeper within the upper part of the diametral notch in the secondary shaft and just above the perimeter of the head of the main shaft, and means on said main shaft adapted to engage said keeper when said main shaft is oscillated in one direction only, said latter means comprising diametrically opposite lugs raised above the normal level of the upper perimeter of the main shaft head and each with a vertical face coinciding with one side of the notch in said head, said keeper normally in the path of said lug faces When the main shaft is rotated in one direction,

as set forth.

In testimony tures.

LESTER D. FRIEL. FREDERIC T. HARDING.

whereof we affix our signa- 

